El-Degas ES-345 Copy

i just got this WONDERFUL cherry sunburst (quite unusual; most of them are wine red) EL D??GAS copy of a Gibson ES-345 last week. paid $150 on my local ebay-thing, with a cable, stand and softcase included. i think i did ok.
this is -i suppose- from the late 60s or early 70s, made in the infamous ibanez "lawsuit" factory in japan. i've seen these guitars with Ibanez, El Degas, Marlboro and other brand names on the headstock, but it's the same thing; that's how they did it back in the day.

i'm VERY impressed that after all those years the guitar still looks like NEW, really really well taken care of, and the 4 pots are nice and quiet. kinda weird that the bridge volume control is where the neck tone control normally is. the 3-way switch is also nice and quiet, as well as the 6-way rotary switch (the other ones' i've seen only had a 3-way rotary switch!). GREAT quality, the cables of the wiring are nicely isolated tubes, etc. etc. no complaints.
the two humbuckers are powerful, and i wouldn't change them for anything. really good stuff, with the old worn PAF look.

i don't know what material it is made off but the grain and all looks nice and fancy. the body is bound on both sides, kinda les paul custom style binding with the little black stripes in there. again, impressive workmanship; it's not falling off or so.
the finish is not flaking or crackling. again, even though it was kept in a softcase all these years, there is no damage.

the only difference between this and a REAL 345 is that the neck is bolt-on (more of that later) and that the guitar has no solid center block, which makes her very light and suceptible (sp?) to feedback. more of that later, too.

the bridge is a tune-o-matic style with white plastic saddles. the little cable to keep them in place is there, but it's somehow streched and superflous (sp?) but the bridge is solid and firm. not rattling or so.

the tuners, as well as all the hardware (pickups, bridge, trapeze tailpiece, etc.) are... oh well, used to be gold plated, which has nicely worn off. one tuner (low E) has been replaced, and i WILL get some decent grovers on it ASAP cuz the tuners are CRAP!!! only negative i'll give this one, they REALLY cheaped out BIG TIME. booo! they squeal and crack and the upper stick sometimes pops out. yeah, real P.O.S. tuners. bummer.

other than that, it's all wonderful, an eye catcher for sure. i'll give it an 8. if you get it with new good tuners i'd dare giving it a 10, no bull.
ok let's move on to the other categories...

i play bluesy experimental psychedelic alternative rock, or whatever you wanna call it. usally lotsa delay-driven overdrives with phasers and such into my '68 twin reverb or some sound city or marshall head, into one of my mid-70s 4x12 cabs (marshall or orange).
it has a rich and full sound, all the time.

even when not connected, it has a very loud resonance. delicious.

i DEPEND on feedbacks for my music. i mean, the GOOD feedbacks, not the ear-splitting microphonic feedbacks, but the good nice ones that give you the RIGHT note. and this guitar has it all.
...maybe even a bit too much. since there is no solid center block the guitar is completely hollow and vibrates/responds to each note picked and plucked.
this is a good thing but it's suddenly a bit TOO sensitive if you have the amp set at a certain mid/high volume. i'll have yet to use it live onstage to see if maybe stepping away enough form the amp would remedy that to some point. my rehearsal room is too small to "hide" somewhere. but i had that in mind and i don't regret it.
with less distortion and lower volume it's a dream. it's bluesy, jazzy and "ballsy" fer sure. LOVE it.

ok it's around 30-40 years old. dunno how they set it up back in the day. but fist thing i noticied when i laid hands on it was that the action was too high; it needed a neck shim. so i took the neck off and laid a medium guitar pick in the pocked; voil?? problem solved.
no buzzing noise ANYWHERE all over the fretboard, and that's quite impressive since i have many "high-priced" older guitars that buzz all over. man i need a good guitar tech... but since i'm in puebla, mexico, that's a bit of a problem since i have to do it all by myself and i'm by no means an expert. but for now, it's enough.
finish is flawless and looks wonderful. i've seen some japanese sunbursts that make me wanna hurl. this is NOT one of those.

well it's been here for over 30-40 years and it still looks, feels and sounds as new (with the exception of the gold hardware - but i like the old look).
i've not used it live yet but i sure will, but i am confident it will behave very good. just keep the distortion low and GET NEW TUNERS!!!
hardware otherwise looks solid.

the upper strap button is a bit unconfortable, because the stap gets a bit in the way when playing standing. but maybe i just need to get used to it...

ehm... what?! do you know El D??gas?! - i thought so.

for the $150 i got WAY more than i could ever wish for. this is the "cheapest" guitar i own, in the midst of the old fenders and gibsons i own. but it's like i hit the jackpot.
a bigsby would be nice... maybe someday.

these "lawsuit" babies are getting very sought-after and expensive "collectible", and they are really worth it. get a gibson for 1/10th of its price, sorta.

Gibson ES 345 japaneses copy, color red wine. Probably made in the 70's. Even though i never played a real 345, all the specifications of the real thing seem to be respected. Made of plywood but not sure...equiped with a tailpiece, jumbo frets, 2 stock gold PU's, 6 positions rotary switch. I mainly write this review to come in touch with people owning the same guitar, i think it's pretty rare. As i bought it on Ebay USA recently (09/01) and i'm living in France, i'd like to get more informations about this model and this brand.

I mainly play jazz and blues with it. I really like it, the sound is warm and the PU are versatile on my 65 W 210 Music Man.You can also easily play rock (not trash of course) with the bridge PU. Otherwise, i have a Squier japanese straocaster(early 80's) that i adore and would never sell.

The action is too high due to a problem of attachement of the neck with the body, it's a bolt on neck so after 30 years ...but i'm gonna have it fixed

just had it but considering it's age, it has beautifully grown older

Difficult to find informations about EL DEGAS manufacture, never dealt with them anyway